Monday, June 29, 2015

Editor's disclaimer: This post has been both open on my computer and in the works for, well, ever. The new arrival is not even no longer approaching rapidly and instead her school years are (:P). It's shameful that we are not yet finished her room even though she's now a card carrying toddler but que sera sera and all that fun stuff. For now, I leave you to it...

I went over my powder room painting experiences with Beauti-Tone here, and while I still haven't officially 'revealed' that room, we were forced to skip to the next one.

With the new arrival approaching rapidly, we had to get started on the nursery regardless of what we had on the go. I had a Pinterest board of inspiration along with the beginning of sourced items, but more than anything I had a 'vibe' in mind. After finding the perfect (but super busy) wallpaper, I decided that I would paint 3 walls in a pale pink colour and wallpaper one small wall. That was as good a place to start as any. From there, out came the paint chips and samples. It is important, in my opinion to always get samples and test them out in several locations in your room. The reasons for this are simply that lighting, whether natural or not, changes things significantly and it's important to know that you're getting exactly what you want before it's too late. So here is the process and my experiences on this second-take of testing out Beauti-Tone.

As I mentioned above, you should always bring home a couple samples when selecting your wall colour. I had a specific icy blush in mind for the walls and picked the colour that I thought that had to be + one other pale pink, for good measure. I can tell you today that I am very glad I picked that second colour, as the first proved to not translate (at all) to what I wanted once it was up on the walls.

Never fear though, I am still in deep love with that apricot and will more than likely be saving that beauty for our master bedroom {sidebar: I've decided that one day, once things 'settle' and I can finally make heads or tails of my constant clutter, I will 'treat' myself by doing a room for ME. The master bedroom always gets back-burnered because no one sees it, but I do, and I want a little more pretty in my mornings.

Once the colour was selected, it was time to get the paint. For this project I went with the designer series because even though I was pregnant, this room was well ventilated (unlike the powder room). I used the same white again for all the trim work and Silk Thread was our winning pink.

The actual painting experience was far less stressful than the previous time. This is, in large part, due to the pale colour vs. the heavily saturated blue that I had to have last time. In fact, if I hadn't needed to be the vehicle that took paint from can to walls, the room may have painted itself. Keeping in mind that we were dealing with a pale colour that was difficult to see at times, the coats went on smoothly and evenly throughout. When I thought I would just have time to get one wall coated, I found that I was able to sneak in a little more... that's how well it all went.

Thursday, June 12, 2014

If you have been living under a rock for the past few months, let me take this opportunity to remind you that it is election day in Ontario. More likely though, you've been bombarded with media on said election and I hope you've been paying attention.

Voter turnout has not been good in the recent past (this is the fault of the nerds according to this Macleans article, but I digress), and that pains me. Voting is a privilege and a right and we need to recognise and embrace that. I realise that the options are not popular and I understand the hesitations but someone is going to hold office, you really should have your say about who. This is a genuine chance for us to be the boss, to have a position on a very important board of directors... seize it.

Let's take this opportunity to show the candidates that we are NOT apathetic, that we will hold them to their platform promises, and that we do care how our province is run. Then, perhaps all the naysayers will be true to their word and seek a role in politics prior to the next election. I also encourage them to do so.

For now, it IS election day and it IS important to vote, so it's time to make a choice for someone. According to the above noted Macleans article we really can't use the 'my vote doesn't matter' rationale anymore since low turnout means each vote is worth more than it has in decades, how's that for food for thought?

On that note, the Little-Miss and I are off. It won't be a fun walk in the rain but we have a job to do.

Monday, June 2, 2014

As I mentioned in a previous post, with our new arrival on the way, we had to drop everything and get to work on her future nursery. To that end, we've been looking at many items and aspects of it for some time now, but with the nursery having yet to be completed, our search continues on.

One product that was brought to my attention are the beautiful rugs sold by the feltballrug.com. These rugs are not only beautiful but also have a lovely story to tell. Recently, I was watching a rerun episode of Dragon's Den, where a recent University graduate from my neck of the woods (and school) pitched an eyewear company that used recycled materials from and were manufactured in his home (African) country. He didn't make it on the show as he was a little too 'green' for the dragons (they invited him back in a year) but he did have their interest due to the ethical nature of his work plan. They discussed how consumers like this angle nowadays as it provides them with the opportunity to purchase something lovely that they wanted anyway, and help to make a difference at the very same time. This got me thinking, they were right, weren't they? People, all things being equal, would love to make a difference in their purchases and that's another reason (aside from obviously lovely products) that feltballrug.com is so great. That was quite the long-winded segue, wasn't it?

Anyway, so right, feltballrug.com is the company behind beautifully handcrafted rugs from Nepal. The rugs themselves are made up of many naturally-dyed, hand-rolled, and sun-dried balls of wool. The artisans themselves add another ethical angle to this product too. Each rug is handcrafted by Nepalese women who, in most cases, have no other professional background, and have families to care for. Many of the rugs are handcrafted in the very homes where these families reside, providing not only an income for these women but also the flexibility they require as home keepers and mothers. These rugs are just so unique that I invite you to read a little more about the process yourself, here. There's also a pretty neat video available here, which pretty much makes me want to go to Nepal and make a rug myself. Admittedly, my favourite aspect of these rugs is how kid-friendly they are. Not only are they dyed (chemically-free) 100% pure New Zealand wool BUT that also means that they possess a natural protective layer that makes them repellent to dirt and water. Umm, yeah they do. Any cloth diapering wool users out there? Yup, like that.

Feltballrug.com provides several options for the perfect rug for your home. The most interesting, to me, is that you can design your own here, making it perfect for your space. If that's a little too much for you though, there are the more standard options of their round rugs or rectangular rugs. These provide 15 standard designs while designing your own reveals 65 additional colours to choose from. I received a colour chart from the company and can attest to how vivid and beautiful they are, not to mention how lovely the balls feel. I think walking on something like that would be quite the treat! It is also worth noting that if you need guidence or assistance in designing your unique piece, textile designer and FeltBallRug.com co-founder, Nasia Burnet is available for just that!

'FeltBallRug.com offers free shipping throughout the world. Standard designs are shipped within two weeks while custom rugs are shipped within approximately four weeks. The company also has a Happiness Guarantee: If customers are not satisfied with their rugs, they can return them no questions asked.'

Those who know me well, know that I hate shipping charges. I know why we need to pay them, but I hate them. So free shipping certainly has my attention!

Monday, May 12, 2014

I mentioned (fairly) recently on facebook that I was waiting on many things. These things would mean not only a lot to do, but also a lot to write about. These things are happening slowly now, so I'm hoping to get to work soon, as I find the time (and energy).

With Mother's Day come and gone, there's no better time to share our news -

One of those 'things' was a new wee member of our family! The Mini-Mister is now a proud big brother to his new sister! He is a nurturer if I've ever seen one and it makes the Mister's and my heart swell daily. It is amazing to see someone I love so much, love our new daughter too.

The Little-Miss was born into our little family, one day late, on February 22nd at 4:51am. This birth was a little different from her brother who came 3 days early and entirely intervention-free. The similarities are that, once active labour actually started, things went quick and for the second time, we were with the same wonderful midwifery group and were under the same great care as with the Mini-Mister.

The differences started early. Pregnancy was... harder. This was true both physically and mentally. I just couldn't shake the feeling that we were robbing the Mini-Mister of his time to be the baby. I wanted to spend every possible second with him yet I was exhausted and not feeling well. Then there was the fact that I was deeply saddened by the feeling that the new edition was suffering from 'second baby syndrome ' before she was even born (and not just from us). I was bothered by the fact that she wouldn't have the surprise/sentimentality/keepsakes that her brother had (even if he doesn't and may never care about them). Was the Mister right when he said that she was going to be loved by us and that she was going to be an important part of our 'crew'? Absolutely, but they were very real and very heavy feelings at the time (Editor's note: The word 'crew' came from a very wise friend who had previously felt exactly what I was feeling. She really provided clarity and substantiation to what I was going through).

Anyway, fast forward through about 9.5 months of aforementioned heaviness and we waited for her to signal her pending arrival... and waited, and waited. On February 20th, just one day before my estimated due date (and, as it was, my 31st birthday), I was enjoying some pre-bedtime cuddles with the Mini-Mister. It is, by far, my favourite time of day so it's only fitting that what happened next, happened then. It was in adjusting the little man, while sitting on his bed with him on my lap, that I felt a pop. I just knew what it was immediately, even without ever feeling it before. I yelled for the Mister, told him what happened and left him to finish bedtime. I called the midwife, made a plan, then waited. Nothing happened. After a surprisingly quiet night, the following morning we headed into the clinic to make sure all was well and to make a plan. Options were discussed regarding potential induction buuut no one really thought it would get to that. After that, contractions came and went all day long and (admittedly) got a little annoying after a while. For the record, the midwife only gave me until 8am the following morning to have contractions pick up on their own.

That night, we put the Mini-Mister to bed again as a (surprisingly) only child. I can assure you that knowing what I did about the following morning, I savoured every second with him, my little bear. At midnight my little love woke up yelling (it happens from time to time) and I went in to see him. After getting him back to bed, contractions started again...

At that point the midwife, who was already at the hospital, invited us to come in while she called for back up. Unfortunately, by the time we reached the hospital things had ground to a screeching halt again. We walked circles around the labour & delivery unit in hopes of it picking back up but it didn't work. Around 2:30am, 30 hours after my water initially broke, we started the induction. Fast-forward two hours to 4:30am and active labour was called... guess who showed up 20 minutes later?

Introducing little baby E -

We checked out of the hospital a couple hours later and arrived home around 7:30am. It was another whirlwind night filled with a whirlwind birth. A small price to pay for a complete little family, err... crew!

Daddy got her dressed to hit the road.

Pride... and fatigue.

A little while after the Mini-Mister woke up and was ready to pay attention to his sister... very interesting (and soft), these babies.

Thursday, October 24, 2013

When the Mister and I, in a whirlwind of house shopping, purchased our first home together three and a half years ago we couldn't have truly foreseen what it would be today. Sure, we had plans, hopes, and aspirations for what this new step meant for our future family and of course, our future projects, but really we could never have known. Today, we rush home from work to be with our little guy while he wanders around the living room straying a stream of toys behind him as he does, all day we look forward to sitting down in our dining room with our little family even if it means our over tired little boy will be whiny the whole time, we approach bath time with the excited anticipation shared only by that same little guy who is about to get to play with all his favourite bath toys, and then play time before bed is all of our favourite time of all because we read and play together as a family in the best room in the house - the Mini-Mister's nursery. Yes, our new house became a home with such fervour that we didn't know what hit us, until it had. It's been great; every messy, primary-coloured second of it. Then, with only slightly less excitement, the Mister and I look forward to the Mini-Mister's bedtime when we can then retire to our basement family room with the pugs, to curl up in front of the fire and TV to unwind. Life these days is almost as, if not more, whirlwind than our house shopping was but I don't think we'd trade it for anything. It's been amazing. Our home has been amazing.

We are living on a relatively modest footprint, given that our town home is only approximately 1800 square feet, but it's been more than perfect for us thus far. While we don't foresee that changing in the short-term, we do suspect that one day, we'll be looking to add a little more personal space to our personal space. Surprisingly though, I don't look forward to that day right now because I'm only becoming more and more attached to this home with every room that we 'do' together. We loved that this house was about as plain and builder standard as they come when we moved in, because it has really pushed and permitted us to create our own spaces with our own signatures. I hope that, short of finding the perfect home for the perfect price, when we start shopping again, we're able to nail down another blank slate. It really was the best fit for us.

On the topic of blank slates, I was looking at a house today that reminded me a lot of ours when we first moved in. You see, my parents are now on the market for a new house and they're hoping to find something in fairly close proximity to us, so they've been shopping in our neighbourhood. This house, that is currently at the top of their list, is large and well-situated which is nice, but even nicer (in my opinion anyway) is that it's a blank slate. What's important to me and what we were lucky enough to get in this house (and my parents would as well should they choose the house in question), is that the blank slate be extremely clean and 'liveable'. I'm not (and I don't think they are either) at a point in my life where I find myself with the time and energy to tackle a 'fixer-upper' but renovating/decorating rooms on my schedule because they are (the theoretical) fine the way they are, makes all the difference. I've been watching their shopping process unfold and I've certainly caught myself reminiscing from time to time because of it.

When we were shopping we experienced two different aspects of the housing sales industry. We 'hired' a real estate agent who helped us in our search by sending us many MLS listings and narrowing down important criteria, facilitated house tours, and guided us through the purchase of our ultimate choice. That choice however, was not listed on MLS but rather Grapevine, which is a 'for sale by owner'-type real estate site. When we found the house, we contacted our agent who contacted the seller as we wanted to make sure that they were willing to 'work with' (read: pay) an agent so that we would be able to continue to benefit from his experience and services that we'd grown accustomed to (not to mention, not leave him high and dry!). Luckily, the home-owner agreed and before long, we were on our way to home ownership. My only 'stressors' relating to the whole process were; the first house that we bid on and lost (thank goodness, we now know that it was not for us at all), and the butterflies when we bid on this one because it was perfect and we had to have it. Otherwise, the process was quite smooth and pleasant. It was a seller's market at the time, and who was going to walk away with the ownership was usually anyone's guess!

Driving around my neighbourhood the other day though, I saw a sign that I'd never seen:

Not the actual sign - (Credit: Comfree)

I'd recently heard about Comfree but this prompted me to look into it more. I was fairly certain that this model of housing sales company was not around when we were looking in early 2010. As far as I can tell, via a quick search, the rules regarding flat-fee MLS listings changed in March of 2010, just shortly after we bought. The Comfree site tells me that they've been around since 2007 though, so perhaps my research skills need a little oil. Either way, as a buyer I would have certainly done some searching on their (and affiliated) site had I known about it. Anyhow, I poked around their site now and there were a couple properties around our area that I happily browsed (I can't be the only one that does that?). Overall, I'm pleased to learn of another place for me to dream wistfully about our next house even though I'm nowhere near ready for it yet. I do look forward to finishing everything we want to do in our current home, enjoy it for whatever period of time we see fit, and then start it all over again in a new home! Sounds fun, right? :)

So this whole house shopping and real estate business has me wondering what most others have done to buy and/or sell? Do you do it on your own? With some help via a flat-fee service site like Comfree, do you go 'all agent, all the time'? What about your experiences with any of all of these services? Great? Poor?

I'd also love to know what you look for in a house? Are you searching out that blank slate like we did? Or would you prefer that everything be done for you? I don't think that turn-key necessarily means that it has to be done for you, it just has to be clean and livable so that you can make it your own. Maybe all of that is why I shouldn't be allowed to watch HGTV real estate shows anymore? I'm always blown away by the buyers... ALWAYS!

As usual, please feel free to drop me a line with your thoughts - I'd love to hear them!

Happy shopping, house shoppers!
Here's to buying the perfect home for you!

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Do you know why I'm the right person to test paint? Because I am the world's worst painter, that's why. Who better to tell you what the job is going to be like for you other than someone who does everything wrong? Repeatedly.

At that point, your experience can only be better, right? You would not do everything wrong, and I am only 'testing it out'... yup, that's my story. I love Sarah Richardson et al, as much as the next gal interested in home decor and design, but I don't hold a candle to her and her team of experts. Do I love our completed rooms? Damn straight! Are they easy, by any stretch of the imagination? God, not even close.

So all this to say, the powder room is painted. Is it perfect? Ha! No. There are touch-ups needed everywhere. There are imperfections in about as many places too. It's nice though, and my vision is coming along nicely, hiccups notwithstanding.

I think my biggest problem is that I don't follow advice well. In the past, every time I've purchased paint, some lovely newly retired house painter of 20 years, gives me a new piece of advice and I may or may not try it. When I do, it rarely makes my job easier and generally makes it take longer (you know, take your time and do it right and all) so I've yet to be blown away. This is not limited to nice retired men either. I googled all sorts of reading material on painting stripes when I painted the Mini-Mister's nursery, guess when I decided to take that advice? Oh yeah, totally when the job was half-done and I was on the verge of a pregnant, hormonal, nervous breakdown. Know what wasn't different about this experience? Everything. I was up to my old tricks again. I am literally the laziest person ever, at the very least when it comes to painting, though the jury is still out on the rest. I hate prep work, I get tired mid-way through the job, and it usually takes me longer to fix my short cuts than it would have had I done it right in the first place. I'm going to make an excellent example for my kids. I'm that apartment painter that paints dust and hair into the walls... I'm at peace with it mostly. Really.

First and foremost let me say - if anyone ever hears me breathe that I want to go dark again... Slap me. Seriously, I'll need the wake-up call. Maybe next time, I'll do it right the first time and all will be right with the world, but probably not. It's just best to steer clear.That aside, you want to hear about paint, not my life choices.

I met a very nice woman, Kate, when I went to pick up my cans of paint for this project. She was very knowledgeable and explained that both the 'Designer's Series' and the 'Natura' brands were basically comparable, save only for the fact that Natura had no VOCs. Since we've a wee boy at home and our family is in the process of growing (why do I do projects when I'm pregnant... why?), I figured that the fewer VOCs, the better. Natura it was; Kate mixed up my cans and sent me on my merry way to paint my heart out!

Beauti-Tone Natura caught me off guard when I first popped open the can. I want to describe it by saying it was 35% cream, to everybody else's 10% (mayyybe 18). This should have been my first indication that I was out of my league and to follow the advice I had been given by the lovely man (Alan) and owner (Peter), at my local Home Hardware store, but I don't do that kind of thing... Too easy. So here I go schlepping this gorgeous colour of (near) paste on the wall all willy-nilly. Did Alan and Peter warn me that with a colour this dark I should make sure that I have enough on my roller? Yup. Did they tell me that if my walls were stark white and I was electing not to independently prime (there is some mixed in), that I should anticipate the potential for a third coat? Oh yes. Also, did they tell me that I should ensure to only roll in one direction, so as not to pull the paint back off the wall? You bet they did. Did I listen? Pfft, no. What I should actually say is that I didn't listen, at first. By wall #4, I changed my insubordinate ways and admitted that I didn't know what I was doing. I started following their advice and wouldn't you know... it was the best wall of the bunch! You're surprised, I know. So rinse and repeat, I went to do my second coat (some time later as I was tired; remember when I said I was pregnant?) and stupidly thought that it would be fine if I just fixed the spots where the white was showing through. Ugh. Cue blotchy walls. I. Will. Never. Learn. Told you.

Fast forward to a few days later when I decide that the only way to fix this is by doing a proper coat all around the room (and a little praying wouldn't hurt either). I noticed that I had nearly depleted my gallon of paint through all my earlier nonsense and realized that I would likely have to get a second for my tiny powder room... *sadness*. Off I went last Friday and stopped in at Home Hardware on my way home from work. Ran into Alan again who confirmed that a good coat should fix my mess and with that, he mixed me up a new can of Starry Night, and sent me on my way...

This is the part you should all pay attention to -

Don't do what I do. Get a grip on how much paint it takes to do something and you'll be a lot happier in the end. I DIDN'T NEED THE CAN, PEOPLE!! Lo and behold, while 'finishing up the existing can first', I didn't finish it. Silly girl. Needless to say, I now have a basically full can of dark blue paint that I don't know what to do with! Oops. I'm sure I'll find a use for it eventually.

Three (well, two and half) coats later, and my walls look pretty spiffy! My complaints about the process lie pretty much only with me, and even if there were little things with the paint that gave me trouble (even though it was still probably my fault), the room looking the way it does and the beautiful dark walls have washed it all away. I should also mention that the Natura line had next to no odour at all. This was perfect for our current situation coupled with the fact that I was painting a small box of a room. Kate was right, and I was pleased with the choice.

Here's a sneak peek so you can see the paint/walls -

Soon, I'll be able to reveal the finished room to you so that you'll actually be able to see the light and how it all came together. For now, note the gorgeous jewel-tone walls (walls seem purple in this picture, but colour is in fact a deep, dark blue), the new tiles, the new fixture (ahem, the loo), and a real sneak peek of the light. As it turns out, I think the thickness of the initial paint is what led to the lovely finish. Despite my best efforts, I wasn't able to screw it up in the end... it actually looks nice!

Stay tuned for the real reveal, and shortly thereafter, some new painting adventures!

Thanks for the experience Beauti-Tone!

**Editor's note: I was provided with the paint for review, however all opinions are my own.**

Monday, September 16, 2013

Like I mentioned here, I attended the media preview for one of the new Ottawa Target stores this morning. There are three brand new stores opening bright and early at 8am tomorrow and they certainly are getting a lot of hype! I'm here to assure you that you will not, in any way, be disappointed and that the hype is not at all setting them up for failure; I was very pleased with what I saw today. Man, that store is cool.

I have a few facts to share, but since you're all here to see what is in store for you, I won't waste any time. Our tour today was led by Mr. John Morioka - Target Canada's Senior Vice President of Merchandising and Lisa Gibson for Target Public Relations. Let's take you on the same tour of the store that I took today -

My Old Navy Rockstar and Frye Paige selfie in the sign. I hope I looked slick enough to fit in!

John Morioka addresses the group.

The Red Card program can be seen here. See below for further details.

Self-Checkout cashes are being rolled out in Canada. This is a new initiative for Target.

Big, bright and tons of room to move.

The party shop. There is literally so much here to make any type of party a special one.

TOTALLY on point Nate Berkus collection. I spy a few things I want.

Cloth diapering mamas? I've been using Nature Clean for quite some time now (Mini-Mister is allergic to Nelly's) and it's great!

An incredibly well stocked grocery section.

Beaver Canoe for Target that I told you about the other day. It's just as nice in person!

Archer Farms flavoured coffees are something we always pick up across the border. This is going to be a much easier way to try them all! I learned today that the chips are pretty awesome too, so I'll be trying those in short order.

The seasonal section. Halloween for now, but Christmas is just around the corner (quite literally actually... see?)!

Toddler and dog Halloween costumes - literally something for every variety of mama!

A well stocked baby section that is all together and easy to navigate, no heading to the grocery section for diapers (because, why would you?)!
(oh and I'll be buying several of those hats)

﻿

Toys, toys...

...and WAY more toys. It's all here. All of it.

There are some great and affordable clothing options for all the littles in your lives.

Do you have a girl? BUY THESE COATS! Holy cute!

I want to buy all of these books for the Mini-Mister. There are so many that I remember as a child!

A well stocked electronics section. Bell and Rogers are the main mobile providers with some of their branch companies as well.

3.1 Phillip Lim for the men in our lives.

The maternity section (because finding cute maternity clothes in Canada before now was horrendous).

Accessories. (I'm not sure if I missed some, or if this section was a bit small.)

Q&A and a farewell.

What a great experience!

I'm so very, very excited to actually get the opportunity to shop. I hope, that when I do get there someone has actually left something from the 3.1 collection for me.

Some facts that I thought would be most important to my readers -

Target's initiative in Canada should result in approximately 20,000 jobs, including about 150 per store.

Target will price match with other store's flyers + they have a great 'Red Card' program which means an extra 5% off your purchase whenever you use the card, no strings attached. There are no charge credit or debit card options for this program.

They are still formulating Black Friday plans, but they will not necessarily be what can be found in the US just because they are an American company. This is still something that (while retailers are starting to participate in here) is catering more to those south of the border given the Thanksgiving holiday.

There will certainly be price differences with the US stores. As I mentioned in my post the other day, this is not a retailer specific thing but a by-product of our economy. Target Canada's prices will be competitive with our market and savings will be brought in wherever possible. An exciting example of this is the US pricing on the 3.1 Phillip Lim collection (as if it needed to be made more desirable)!

There is a competitive 90 day return policy.

Target Canada is poised to bring the Canadian market trendy, affordable, and totally on point items to add to all facets of our lives - our closets, our homes, our social interactions, and our health and well-being. I, for one, cannot wait to make this a regular shopping destination (without having to cross the border). I also can't wait to hear what everyone else thinks! Please don't hesitate to let me know!